Discussing points from Leicester City’s 1-0 win over Walsall, the impact Tete will have, what Kristiansen provided, Daniel Iversen’s future, and the return of excitement
While Leicester City was earning their place in the FA Cup last 16 in the West Midlands, back home, the club was crossing the Ts on the signing of Tete, their latest, and possibly most exciting, attempt to find a true successor to Riyad Mahrez in the right-wing position.
With the deal not confirmed by the club when Brendan Rodgers sat down to discuss his side’s 1-0 win at Walsall, he was unwilling to even tease the Brazilian’s arrival. But he did make one important comment. Speaking more generally about signings, he said: “To have those attacking options will help us elsewhere in the team.”
It’s true. If Tete can replicate the form he showed at Shakhtar Donetsk and Lyon while at the King Power Stadium, he could spark an improvement in at least four other attacking players.
READ MORE: Harry Souttar Leicester City transfer ‘highly doubtful’ as Stoke boss delivers update
READ MORE: Jack Harrison to Leicester City transfer: Leeds stance, £20m offer, Jesse Marsch talks
Let’s start with the obvious one: James Maddison. It was City’s plan all along for their number 10 to return to a central position this season, but the inability to sign a winger in the summer means he has had to play out wide this term as well.
Tete coming in means Maddison will finally move to the middle, with Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall most likely to make way. He will need to be diligent to match Dewsbury-Hall’s energy and press in the role, but it gets him back into the area where he can be most effective.
While he drifts in often when on the right flank, and is still able to rack up excellent tallies of goals and assists, putting him in the middle gets him closer to the most dangerous areas of the pitch where he can do more damage to the opposition. Maddison is one of the best-attacking players in the Premier League and placing him at the heart of the action should only emphasize his qualities.
With Tete on the right and Maddison in the middle, there is a knock-on effect that should help Patson Daka too. His run without scoring now stands at 13 games, and again his performance on Saturday frustrated supporters.
In truth, there was a lot to like about Dhaka’s display. This was not a match where he could sit on the last shoulder and use his pace to get in behind, as Walsall sat too deep for that route to be exploited. And so he needed intelligent movement and alertness to create space for himself in the box. He showed that often and had seven shots.
That none of those efforts ended in the net, and with only two on target, was what caused frustration. Nobody wants a wasteful striker. But being in a position to take those shots is a big plus.
A significant part of being a successful forward is getting into places where shots can be taken. This season, Daka has been much more successful in doing that than Jamie Vardy. The Zambian is averaging a shot every 35 minutes, while for Vardy it is one every 52 minutes.
And if Maddison is in the middle, there is less of a requirement for Daka to drop back, receive the ball to feet, and lay it off. It’s not a natural part of his game, and while he often has the right idea, his execution can sometimes be lacking. But if Maddison is there to move into the pockets and receive the ball, Daka can focus on ensuring he is in the right place in the box. The goals should start flowing again.
The alternative to Daka up front is Kelechi Iheanacho, and he would also benefit from Tete’s arrival. Rodgers’ reluctance to start the Nigerian is mostly because of his lack of pace and penetrative runs in behind. As a striker, his strengths lie in dropping deep, linking play, and scoring from more patient attacks, rather than fast breakaways, as was the case at Walsall.
But in Tete, City has a winger who is willing to get beyond the striker and get into the box. Iheanacho, therefore, becomes a much more viable option in the Premier League, with Rodgers knowing he can trust Tete and Harvey Barnes to still be engaging the defense even in moments where Iheanacho has dropped deep.
Barnes should also profit from Tete’s signing. While Maddison has been injured, nearly every City attack runs through Barnes. He is the man that Youri Tielemans, Dewsbury-Hall, and others are looking to find so that he can carry the ball up the pitch and run at his full-backs.
The opposition has quickly cottoned on. With nobody else to concern defenses, back fours have primed themselves to be ready for Barnes’ forays into the box, limiting his effectiveness. With a winger on the other side that needs attention, it should stretch the defense, and create more space for Barnes to work with, which should help improve his form too.
There is a lot to admire about Tete. Seeing him bamboozle a full-back before sticking the ball into the bottom corner is what are exciting fans right now. But his signing becomes even more mouth-watering when it’s considered what effect he can have on his new teammates.
Most shots under Rodgers in a decent showing
Victory by a one-goal margin against a fourth-tier side is a hard cause for wild celebrations. That much was established at Gillingham a few weeks ago.
But that’s not to say that the win at Walsall should be placed into the same bracket as that in the third round. At Gillingham, on a bobbly pitch in windy weather, City sneaked through. At the Poundland Bescot Stadium, the margin of victory deserved to be more comfortable than it was.
City played some good football, helped by Maddison’s return to the starting line-up, a smoother-running pitch, and by effective substitutions. In total, City had 28 shots at goal, their joint-most in a match under Rodgers, level with the 4-0 win over Luton in 2019. Some iffy finishing and a solid display from Saddlers goalkeeper Owen Evans kept the score to just one deflected goal.
The scoreline means it will be a forgettable match, but it was a decent showing from City. There was more fluidity in their play, and greater intent. The center-backs ran forward with the ball and committed Walsall players, and the midfielders didn’t always play the obvious pass.
Too often, watching City has been tiresome because those in the stands can predict the pass that is going to be played. A successful side can play passes that deceive defenses, and while it was against a League Two outfit, City did that more often on Saturday than they have in a number of weeks. Replicating that in the Premier League is now the task they face.
Kristiansen endears himself but Rodgers could temper Dane
It became evident quite soon into Victor Kristiansen’s City debut that he will start against Aston Villa next weekend, rather than Luke Thomas. The Dane looked immediately at home.
He was not fazed on the ball at the back and played nice, simple passes to help City break out of their own half. But most noticeably, he got forward on the attack too.
There was one moment where he popped up at the back post to lash a volley over the bar and into the stands containing the City fans, and then towards the end, he arrived in the final third to tee up Dewsbury-Hall for a shot that really should have found the net.
It’s not something City has seen from Thomas in recent weeks. Partly through design, the homegrown left-back has tended to stay back and guard against counters alongside his central defenders. Timothy Castagne, on the right, has more freedom to gallop forward when Maddison moves inside, and that restricts what Thomas can do on the left.
But also, it is perhaps a factor of his own game. Thomas has become conservative in his play and does not commit himself to attacks, perhaps in fear that he may not be able to get back should he venture forward.
Kristiansen was different. He got forward at every opportunity, placing faith in his fitness and physical prowess to be able to return to his position quickly should he need to. While it should aid City’s attacks, it could be something that leaves Daniel Amartey and Wout Faes more exposed, and it will be interesting to see if Rodgers tries to temper Kristiansen’s forays forward in order to protect his central defenders.
City supporters won’t want his attacking instincts coached out of him though. The young Dane endeared himself to the fans when he got to the byline and won a corner, and then turned to the away end and thrust up his arms to generate more noise from the City fans. That’s exactly what they want to see, but will Rodgers let it happen?
Iversen’s future may lie elsewhere
That’s now four clean sheets in four appearances for Daniel Iversen. That only amounts to nine save, but he is showing in his City career what he showed at his loan clubs, that he is competent at keeping the ball out of the net.
On Saturday, he also swept up well when long balls went over the top of his defenders. While he didn’t always look comfortable with his feet, he at least had the awareness to know when to try a pass, and when to launch up the pitch and away from danger.
Concerns over his footwork are understood to have contributed to his lack of Premier League opportunities, and why Rodgers kept faith in Danny Ward during his run of poor form. It may also cost Iversen a place in the squad.
Still highly rated by Championship sides thanks to his heroics at Preston, it could be that come the summer, City begins their hunt for a goalkeeper again, Ward drops back to number two, and Iversen is moved on. That sequence of events was possible last summer before the club’s financial reality hit.
It would perhaps be unfair on Iversen, who has done very little wrong for City so far, especially as Saturday’s game may be his last of the season, with Ward potentially coming in for the last-16 tie. But also, he may feel he needs to be a number one, and there will be Championship clubs willing to offer him that.
Open FA Cup brings excitement
Much like the Carabao Cup, the FA Cup is opening up. There are 15 sides City could face in the last 16 when the draw is made on Monday night, and a maximum of eight will be Premier League sides. It could be as few as six. Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool, and Newcastle have already fallen.
City came through a tricky run to win the trophy in 2021, winning away at two Championship sides before overcoming four fellow Premier League outfits, including two of the big six. So far, this run has been kinder and could get more so given those left in the competition.
With a winger through the door to join a new left-back, with potentially a couple of more still to arrive, and with Maddison fit again, there are finally reasons to be excited for City, particularly in the FA Cup. Let’s hope, unlike the Carabao Cup, they don’t whimper at the first big hurdle.
